18 U.S.C. § 3624 : US Code - Section 3624: Release of a prisoner

Search 18 U.S.C. § 3624 : US Code - Section 3624: Release of a prisoner

(a) Date of Release. - A prisoner shall be released by the Bureau
of Prisons on the date of the expiration of the prisoner's term of
imprisonment, less any time credited toward the service of the
prisoner's sentence as provided in subsection (b). If the date for
a prisoner's release falls on a Saturday, a Sunday, or a legal
holiday at the place of confinement, the prisoner may be released
by the Bureau on the last preceding weekday.
(b) Credit Toward Service of Sentence for Satisfactory Behavior. -
(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a prisoner who is serving a term of
imprisonment of more than 1 year (!1) other than a term of
imprisonment for the duration of the prisoner's life, may receive
credit toward the service of the prisoner's sentence, beyond the
time served, of up to 54 days at the end of each year of the
prisoner's term of imprisonment, beginning at the end of the first
year of the term, subject to determination by the Bureau of Prisons
that, during that year, the prisoner has displayed exemplary
compliance with institutional disciplinary regulations. Subject to
paragraph (2), if the Bureau determines that, during that year, the
prisoner has not satisfactorily complied with such institutional
regulations, the prisoner shall receive no such credit toward
service of the prisoner's sentence or shall receive such lesser
credit as the Bureau determines to be appropriate. In awarding
credit under this section, the Bureau shall consider whether the
prisoner, during the relevant period, has earned, or is making
satisfactory progress toward earning, a high school diploma or an
equivalent degree. Credit that has not been earned may not later be
granted. Subject to paragraph (2), credit for the last year or
portion of a year of the term of imprisonment shall be prorated and
credited within the last six weeks of the sentence.
(2) Notwithstanding any other law, credit awarded under this
subsection after the date of enactment of the Prison Litigation
Reform Act shall vest on the date the prisoner is released from
custody.
(3) The Attorney General shall ensure that the Bureau of Prisons
has in effect an optional General Educational Development program
for inmates who have not earned a high school diploma or its
equivalent.
(4) Exemptions to the General Educational Development requirement
may be made as deemed appropriate by the Director of the Federal
Bureau of Prisons.
(c) Pre-Release Custody. - The Bureau of Prisons shall, to the
extent practicable, assure that a prisoner serving a term of
imprisonment spends a reasonable part, not to exceed six months, of
the last 10 per centum of the term to be served under conditions
that will afford the prisoner a reasonable opportunity to adjust to
and prepare for the prisoner's re-entry into the community. The
authority provided by this subsection may be used to place a
prisoner in home confinement. The United States Probation System
shall, to the extent practicable, offer assistance to a prisoner
during such pre-release custody.
(d) Allotment of Clothing, Funds, and Transportation. - Upon the
release of a prisoner on the expiration of the prisoner's term of
imprisonment, the Bureau of Prisons shall furnish the prisoner with
-
(1) suitable clothing;
(2) an amount of money, not more than $500, determined by the
Director to be consistent with the needs of the offender and the
public interest, unless the Director determines that the
financial position of the offender is such that no sum should be
furnished; and
(3) transportation to the place of the prisoner's conviction,
to the prisoner's bona fide residence within the United States,
or to such other place within the United States as may be
authorized by the Director.
(e) Supervision After Release. - A prisoner whose sentence
includes a term of supervised release after imprisonment shall be
released by the Bureau of Prisons to the supervision of a probation
officer who shall, during the term imposed, supervise the person
released to the degree warranted by the conditions specified by the
sentencing court. The term of supervised release commences on the
day the person is released from imprisonment and runs concurrently
with any Federal, State, or local term of probation or supervised
release or parole for another offense to which the person is
subject or becomes subject during the term of supervised release. A
term of supervised release does not run during any period in which
the person is imprisoned in connection with a conviction for a
Federal, State, or local crime unless the imprisonment is for a
period of less than 30 consecutive days. No prisoner shall be
released on supervision unless such prisoner agrees to adhere to an
installment schedule, not to exceed two years except in special
circumstances, to pay for any fine imposed for the offense
committed by such prisoner.
(f) Mandatory Functional Literacy Requirement. -
(1) The Attorney General shall direct the Bureau of Prisons to
have in effect a mandatory functional literacy program for all
mentally capable inmates who are not functionally literate in
each Federal correctional institution within 6 months from the
date of the enactment of this Act.
(2) Each mandatory functional literacy program shall include a
requirement that each inmate participate in such program for a
mandatory period sufficient to provide the inmate with an
adequate opportunity to achieve functional literacy, and
appropriate incentives which lead to successful completion of
such programs shall be developed and implemented.
(3) As used in this section, the term "functional literacy"
means -
(A) an eighth grade equivalence in reading and mathematics on
a nationally recognized standardized test;
(B) functional competency or literacy on a nationally
recognized criterion-referenced test; or
(C) a combination of subparagraphs (A) and (B).
(4) Non-English speaking inmates shall be required to
participate in an English-As-A-Second-Language program until they
function at the equivalence of the eighth grade on a nationally
recognized educational achievement test.
(5) The Chief Executive Officer of each institution shall have
authority to grant waivers for good cause as determined and
documented on an individual basis.